On Wednesday, citizens of Mozambique began a three-day mourning period to honor the victims who were killed during the post-election protests.

Protesters across Mozambique took to the streets on Wednesday to begin a three-day period of unofficial national mourning called by opposition leader Venancio Mondlane for the victims of deadly post-election violence.

However, the demonstrations were sparse, with few people seen in the capital, Maputo, or other parts of the country. It appeared that many protesters had stayed home on the first day of mourning.

Mondlane explained that the protests were meant to honor the victims, including demonstrators from previous protests and those who were killed by the police, who were supposed to protect them.

"We are declaring national mourning for the martyrs who were killed from October 31. During this period, we are urging the public to continue the noisy nighttime protests, such as banging pots, but without marches," Mondlane said in a Facebook post, calling for peaceful demonstrations.

Mondlane also asked Mozambicans to wear black and carry placards, and to avoid bringing sticks, machetes, or other blunt objects. He encouraged people to observe a 15-minute moment of silence at noon as a tribute to those who lost their lives.

On Tuesday, President Filipe Nyusi addressed the nation, inviting all presidential candidates to a meeting to "find solutions to the current political impasse," acknowledging that the post-election violence had created "chaos and fear" across the country.

Violent protests have erupted in major cities and towns since the National Election Commission announced the results of the October 9 election, declaring ruling Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo) candidate Daniel Chapo the winner with 70% of the vote, while Mondlane secured 20%.

Mondlane had called for a week of demonstrations starting on October 31 to contest the "fraudulent" election results. In response to his call, hundreds of people took to the streets in protest.

Human rights organizations in Mozambique report that the protests have so far resulted in 33 deaths and numerous injuries.

On October 19, opposition leaders Elvino Dias and Paulo Guambe were killed in Maputo. However, opposition groups claim that the true number of fatalities since October 31 stands at 50.

In response to the unrest, Interior Minister Pascoal Ronda banned all protests on Friday, urging Mozambicans to "co-operate with the authorities to stop the violence." He described the protests as "acts of terrorism" and stated that the government would not allow them to continue, emphasizing that they were "destroying the country."